This pub has built a strong reputation for glowing reviews
The Mermaid located in Ellington, Cambridgeshire(Image: Google Street View)
Cambridgeshire residents and visitors are truly spoilt for choice when it comes to places to dine. From affordable places, to ones where you go when you’re looking to celebrate with a special treat. You name it, this county has it.
Hidden away in the lovely countryside of Cambridgeshire is Ellington, home to an enchanting country pub. The Mermaid, located on the high street, has received some glowing reviews. The hidden gem is definitely worthy of a place on your must-visit list.
The pub is known for its roaring fires, high-quality food, and old ship timbers. The interior offers a cosy style that gives off the aesthetic of a dining room that you would find in a home.
Chris and Kay currently run the rustic inn. They bought it again, having previously owned it before, and it underwent renovations to the interior.
This 14th-century village eatery offers a variety of classic home-cooked pub grub. This includes the chef’s seafood pie, the classic gammon steak, or even beef lasagne.
Vegetarians will find a delightful array of choices to satisfy their palates. From vegetarian wellington to a moussaka, this place caters to every need.
The Mermaid has built a strong reputation among diners and earned an average rating of 4.6 out of five stars from more than 600 reviews on Tripadvisor.
One happy diner captioned their experience on Tripadvisor as “A place NOT to be missed”. They wrote: “What a gem of a traditional pub.”
They added: “A lovely log fire, warm atmosphere and a decent menu variety to choose from that is not limited to burgers, pizzas and fish and chips that you can anywhere.”
Another diner dubbed the restaurant a “super pub”. Another wrote: “Amazing restaurant. Very welcoming and friendly. The décor is gorgeous. The service was excellent and the food was absolutely delicious. A great selection on the menu and the specials board. Good selection of wines too. We had a brilliant evening.”
Guests can also extend their visit to a night away. The Mermaid Inn offers single and double bed rooms combining vintage charm with modern contemporary décor. A single bedroom costs £75 and a double room costs £85. It is an exceptionally good value, especially considering today’s market.
Actor Eric Dane, known for his roles in Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria, died this week after suffering from ALS
Steven Smith Content Editor
09:21, 21 Feb 2026Updated 09:36, 21 Feb 2026
ALS explained after Eric Dane’s death
A woman whose brother and husband died of Motor Neurone Disease like Eric Dane has revealed the unusual first “secret signs” they had the “cruel and devastating” incurable condition. Carol Deytrikh-White, 65, lost her husband Alex and brother Brian to MND in March 2009 and 2022, respectively.
American actor Eric Dane, known for his roles in Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria, passed away on Thursday after suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the most common form of MND. Alex’s first symptom was that he noticed running was getting harder, despite going three times a week.
For Brian, his first sign was that he was losing his voice towards the end of each day. MND is a life-shortening and incurable condition that causes weakening of the muscles until a person becomes unable to move, breathe or speak.
Carol, a retired nurse practitioner from Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, became a carer to her late husband Alex in the months before he passed. She now devotes her time to raising awareness and fundraising for the condition, which she described as “cruel and devastating”.
Carol said: “We’re all aware that MND is one condition you don’t want to get – it’s so cruel. I think I knew that Alex had MND before he did – but the diagnosis was a completely devastating, heart-dropping kick in the stomach.
“It affects the whole family and, for the majority of people who develop MND, it doesn’t offer any hope. But awareness has a two-fold benefit – fundraising for treatments, but also so that the people around you can have more empathy for those affected. There’s a human tendency not to deal with or talk about things that feel uncomfortable.”
Alex was physically active, and he and Carol would regularly play squash and run together. But before he was diagnosed, Carol says Alex, who was an officer in the RAF, noticed his running was getting harder despite running three times a week.
He got a weakness in his left arm and, after failing his RAF medical, consultants started to run tests. It was first thought he might have a trapped nerve, but he was diagnosed shortly after, which Carol described as “devastating”.
After his diagnosis, as Alex’s condition deteriorated, he was less able to walk, talk, breathe and sleep. She eventually reduced her hours at work to just a handful a week, in order to care for Alex.
She said: “With Alex’s journey, the rate of progression was quick. He died within two years of the diagnosis.
“In the last two weeks I had to attend to Alex every half an hour because he was unable to swallow even saliva. I was attending to him all day, but I was also getting up throughout the night for his feeds and ventilation.
“I couldn’t go out, not even to the shops. But all I wanted was to be with him, I didn’t see it as a sacrifice. It was a privilege.”
After Alex passed away, Carol felt like she was “thumped in the stomach” when her brother, Brian, was diagnosed with MND a few years later. Brian – who was living in Thailand at the time of his diagnosis – emailed his sister to say he was losing his voice at the end of each day.
He had sent letters and tests back to Carol and the diagnosis was confirmed on a trip back to the UK. Brian returned to Thailand, with Carol flying over to help with equipment and support before his death in 2022 at the age of 57.
Carol said: “Hearing Brian’s diagnosis years after losing Alex, because MND is still relatively rare, and they didn’t have a genetic relation, it was unbelievable as well as devastating. Brian spent the last three of four years ‘locked in’ in his bed. He couldn’t move or eat.”
Carol has since remarried and spends a lot of her time fundraising for the Motor Neurone Disease Association with her husband, John White, 69. Alex had already raised a lot of money for the association and Carol wanted to continue his work and keep his memory “very much alive and celebrate his life”.
They are walking along the entire coast of the UK, which is around 11,000 miles in total, and around 8,000 miles to walk because of the layout of the paths, she said. They have been completing it bit by bit for the past ten years, alongside juggling seeing their seven children combined, plus 11 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
At their current rate, they anticipate finishing in four years’ time. The challenge has raised £5,500 for the MND Association so far.
She said: “For other conditions, there is an element of hope, but at the moment, for MND, it’s not there. And hope is the last human instinct to go – I almost didn’t believe Alex was dying on the night that he died.
“But when you do watch someone you love die, you realise how lucky you are to have that day and the next. In my lifetime I want to keep fundraising and I want to see hope given for others diagnosed. I realise we’re privileged to have life and it’s our duty to make the most of it.”
Councillors have supported plans for “significant investment” in Huntingdon’s leisure facilities, including building new pools, padel courts, and an artificial pitch.
The existing swimming pool in Huntingdon is set to be replaced with new facilities.(Image: Google)
Councillors have backed plans to build new swimming pools and fitness facilities at the leisure centre in Huntingdon. Proposals to ‘significantly invest’ in the facilities were described as being of “great benefit” to Huntingdonshire.
Huntingdonshire District Council submitted plans to extend and refurbish One Leisure Huntingdon, including building a new 25-metre eight-lane swimming pool, with a spectator seating area and a 13-metre learner pool.
New fitness suites are also planned, with a tennis court set to be replaced with a padel court, and a new full size artificial football pitch to be built.
Planning documents said the age and range of existing pool facilities meant the leisure centre is “not fulfilling its potential”. The plans added that refurbishing the existing pools to bring them up to the necessary standards is not considered commercially viable.
The new pools and fitness facilities are proposed to be built through a new two-storey extension to the ‘dry’ side leisure centre. The existing ‘wet’ side, where the pools are currently based, is proposed to be refurbished and used for non-pool related activities.
Duncan Mason, agent representing the district council, told councillors at a meeting on Monday (February 16) that the application represented a “significant investment in Huntingdon’s health, wellbeing and community sports provision”.
He said: “The proposals are a direct response to clear strategic priorities and evidenced community need. Huntingdon currently faces a measurable shortage of swimming facilities, indoor fitness provision, and accessible racket facilities, this scheme addresses these gaps.
“It also brings the wet-side and dry-side into a single coordinated hub, delivering necessary operational efficiencies and improving the user experience to far better align with customer modern day expectations.”
Mr Mason said the redevelopment would offer leisure facilities “of a quality that the people of Huntingdon deserve”. Support for the project was shared by Huntingdon Town Council and Sports England.
Concerns were raised by Anglian Water, which objected due to the Huntingdon (Godmanchester) Water Recycling Centre having “insufficient capacity to accept additional flows from the development”.
Planning officers at the district council pointed out that this would be a replacement facility, not an entirely new development. They also said the day-to-day foul flows would be slightly lower than at present, with higher rates expected when gala and event days take place.
Officers said on balance they recommended the application should be approved, due to the “substantial public benefits” outweighing the potential harms.
New facilities will be a ‘great benefit to Huntingdonshire’
Councillor Jon Neish said the committee had to “look quite carefully” at the plans, as they had been put forward by the district council. He said the concerns about foul water were “a bit of an issue”, but highlighted that the advice provided to them was that the new facility would offer an improvement.
Cllr Neish said: “I think overall it is a really good scheme that will really benefit Huntingdonshire. [The leisure centre] covers a massive area, a lot of people go there, not just from a swimming perspective, but for the other health benefits.”
Councillor Eric Butler said he thought it was a “good scheme” and said he would support it, but said he had some concerns about only creating an extra 10 parking spaces. He said: “Huntingdon itself is under quite a lot of growth at the moment and even more is coming.
“The parking provision, it bothers me a little bit, if you are looking to have higher turnover of users I do not think 10 extra spaces will be enough, I think you need more provision for that.”
Councillor Kevin Gulson said he shared this concern, but suggested there could be ways to encourage people who live nearby to walk or cycle to the leisure centre, rather than driving. He said he believed the plans for the new facilities would be a “great benefit to the town and Huntingdonshire”.
Councillors ultimately agreed unanimously to approve the application.
Huntingdonshire District Council wants to extend and refurbish a leisure centre it runs to meet growing demand for the facilities.
Illustrative image showing proposed extension to build new pools at One Leisure Huntingdon.(Image: Saunders Boston Architects / Huntingdonshire District Council)
New swimming pools and fitness facilities could be built in Huntingdon under plans to improve the town’s leisure centre. Huntingdonshire District Council has submitted a planning application to extend and refurbish One Leisure Huntingdon, including building new swimming pools and fitness suites. It also includes plans to relocate an artificial pitch and create new racket courts.
Councillors are due to consider the plans at a meeting on Monday, February 16. Planning documents submitted as part of the application said current pool facilities mean the leisure centre is “not fulfilling its potential” due to the age and range of what is available.
The plans said: “The extent of refurbishment works required to bring it up to a necessary standard is not considered commercially viable. It is proposed therefore that the ‘wet’ side facilities are to be merged with the ‘dry’ side offering by way of a two-storey extension. The existing ‘wet’ side facility is to be refurbished for non-pool related activities.”
A new 25-metre eight-lane swimming pool with a spectator seating area is proposed, as well as a 13-metre learner pool, and other associated facilities.
The plans said there is currently a “significant under provision” of swimming and fitness facilities in the district. It said: “It is evident that the provision of new swimming pools, fitness suites and external sports pitches will provide needed sports facilities helping to address identified deficiencies.
“The development proposals represent significant investment in council owned community infrastructure. There will be significant economic benefits during the construction period and subsequent benefits will stem from both increased operational employment and the socio-economic benefits of increased public participation in health and fitness.”
A report published ahead of the meeting next week highlights that support for the project has been shared by Huntingdon Town Council and Sports England.
An objection to the development has been raised by Anglian Water due to concerns about the plans for foul water drainage to go to the Huntingdon (Godmanchester) Water Recycling Centre. The report said this has “insufficient capacity to accept the additional flows from the development”.
Officers said they asked Anglian Water for more information about the concerns, including to what extent that development would result in a net increase in foul flows, given there is an existing leisure centre, and what the environmental harm could be.
The report said the response from Anglian Water explained that its objection did not take into account that this is a refurbishment and extension of an existing leisure centre, rather than a whole new facility being provided.
Officers said in the planning balance they gave weight to the “potential environmental risks arising from the additional flows generated by the expanded wet-side facilities”.
However, they also highlighted the “clear and substantial public benefits” of the project, including the upgraded health and recreation facilities. Officers said they therefore recommended that the application is approved, subject to conditions.
The report said: “Not all developments are entirely without harm or entirely without benefit. In reaching a recommendation, the identified harm has been carefully balanced against the benefits of the development.
“In this case, the cumulative benefits are considered sufficient to outweigh the identified less than substantial harm to a designated heritage asset and the environmental harm arising from the additional foul flows generated by the proposed development.”
Councillors will make the final decision on whether planning permission is granted for the proposed development when they consider the application next week.
A man who filmed in women’s toilets has been jailed. Alan Russell, 46, was reported to his bosses by a colleague in April 2025 after he followed her to the women’s toilet at their workplace in Huntingdon.
CCTV footage showed Russell waiting for the victim to close the cubicle door, before entering the toilets while filming on his phone. This was in breach of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) imposed by Lincolnshire Magistrates’ Court in July 2015 after Russell was convicted of multiple voyeurism offences.
Part of the SHPO forbade Russell from entering any female toilets, loitering within 10m of any public toilet, or entering any room that females use as a changing room.
The 46-year-old of Princes Street, Peterborough, admitted to voyeurism and breaching a SHPO at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday (February 5). He was sentenced to one year and six months in prison.
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